This invention relates to aquariums and terrariums and specifically to a novel manifestation of a picture background aquarium or terrarium which can be displayed on a vertical or horizontal surface.
Picture wall mount aquariums are a unique derivation of the very old basic aquarium concept, whereby one can add a special dimension to the versatility and purpose of an aquarium. By integrating the functional requirements of a terrarium into a picture wall mount aquarium, one arrives at this invention which is a combination picture wall mount aquarium and terrarium, ideally suited for either an aquarium or terrarium function.
Known picture wallmount aquariums range from hand crafted and very ornate, to handcrafted and complex, to possibly mass producible, but relatively complex and expensive. These limitations unfortunately restricted the number of people who could benefit from these past inventions. All these picture wallmount aquariums appear to be relatively difficult and awkward to wallmount, requiring a strong supportive reinforced surface and a number of nails or screws for securing the unit to a wall. It is not known to have a picture wallmount terrarium, or a combination picture wallmount aquarium and terrarium.
Known prior art picture wallmount aquariums suffer from the following disadvantages:
(a) Limitations of their design precluded their practical use on both vertical and horizontal surfaces;
(b) They were not mass producible by inexpensive methods;
(c) They were relatively cumbersome to transport, relocate and clean;
(d) They could not be displayed on a common wall surface without having a number of attach points, or at least one structural reinforcing support member behind the wall surface for attachment thereto. These mounting requirements eliminated many possible desired mounting locations, resulting in a decreased versatility of the invention;
(e) Changing of the picture scenes was a relatively complex task and the availability of appropriate, correctly sized, ready to install background scenery was limited;
(f) They could not be easily side mounted in combination with side surfaces abutted, thus limiting the possibility of many decorative or scientific uses; and
(g) They were not of a sufficient design, or of a construction of adequate materials to normally withstand a matter of course fall, or tip-over event.
These complexities and shortcomings possibly explain why picture wallmount aquariums were not a success in the marketplace.
There is accordingly a need for a safely, efficiently and inexpensively found picture wallmount aquarium or a picture wallmount terrarium. There is need for a simple attractive nature which lends itself to state of the art manufacturing methods available with plastic injection molding.